


It's Hard to Breathe (But That's Alright)

by jaylene



Series: Tumblr Dribs & Drabs [5]
Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M, I didn't specify, KiriSaku, and ALSO sakura stripped off most or all of her clothes, and by fun i mean uncomfortable, and it is no good to draw the eyes of an entity of the Deep, and so are the beings that dwell within, idk i didn't really have anything in mind it's up to y'all, sakura has the attention of many, she's gonna have a fun time, so she's in 1. a swimsuit 2. her undergarments 3. skyclad, y'all the ocean is terrifying, yagusaku, zabusaku
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-05
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 14:42:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29209077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jaylene/pseuds/jaylene
Summary: Prompt: Sakura is either A. a sea monster with many forms or B. the handler/tamer for sea monsters that costal governments contract to negotiate with said beasts (or just spank them back into the ocean.)
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Karatachi Yagura, Haruno Sakura/Momochi Zabuza, Haruno Sakura/Sasori
Series: Tumblr Dribs & Drabs [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2121849
Comments: 7
Kudos: 100





	It's Hard to Breathe (But That's Alright)

**Author's Note:**

> _Prompt_ : Sakura is either A. a sea monster with many forms or B. the handler/tamer for sea monsters that costal governments contract to negotiate with said beasts (or just spank them back into the ocean.)

Sakura inhales the scent of brine, bitter and heady, as she lifts her caramel latte to her lips. She’s close enough to the stormy waters that she can almost fool herself into believing that her drink is salted caramel. Sakura casts her eyes out over the roiling waters, lifting her palm just as the sky lets forth a deluge of rain. The rain falls in a globe around her, not touching her in the slightest.

She keeps her eyes on the brewing squall, beginning a countdown in her mind.

3.

2.

1.

Her phone rings.

Sakura glances down at the blocked number and picks up, fingering the wide brim of her hat. “I told you so,” she says, voice dry.

A sigh fills her ear. “I don’t pay you to be right,” Sasori replies, unwilling to concede the victory to her. “I pay you to fix these messes.”

“Technically, _you_ don’t pay me anything; Chiyo does,” Sakura says. “This whole event could have been prevented if you’d just _listened_ to me. These entities get riled up in this season, it’s in their nature. If you just let them—”

“I don’t have time for this,” Sasori snaps. “We have men out in the bay right now who need help. Where the hell are you?”

“Right where I need to be,” Sakura replies, a squall of her own rising in her voice. “Careful how you speak to me, Sasori. Any deaths today are on your hubris, not mine. I expect twice the usual payment for the short notice deposited by sunset today. If it isn’t, I’ll know exactly where to direct my attentions next.”

Sakura ends the call before Sasori can reply, tossing her phone back into her satchel. She stares down into her latte, taking another couple long swigs before mournfully placing it on the hood of her car, expanding her spherical umbrella effect to cover it. This done, Sakura methodically begins to remove her layers, starting with her hat and ending with her black jeans. The chill in the air presses in around her, but Sakura merely takes a pinch of raw wool, spending it in a quick warmth cantrip. She folds her clothes methodically as the sky booms with thunder and flashes with lightning, ignoring the frantic ringing of her phone. She has no doubt that it is Sasori, impatient that she hasn’t yet solved this problem of his own making.

As if treating with entities of the Deep is a simple, easy task.

Sakura locks her car, disappearing her keys into a pocket dimension, and steps to the edge of the cliff. Below her, the bay and the ocean beyond are in absolute turmoil, waters twisting and writhing unnaturally. The bay has taken on the shape of Charybdis, though Sakura knows that Charybdis is touring the arctic waters of the North Pole for the next decade alongside her lover Scylla.

She wonders briefly which Deep entity is stirring up mischief, but she supposes she will soon find out. Sakura stretches her arms out to her sides and leaps from the cliff. She moves her arms above her head, aiming for the water in a dive. She keeps her umbrella bubble around her as she strikes the water, angling her body to get as deep as she can with that velocity. It gets her nearly thirty yards deep and she swims deeper still, her magic seeking out the perpetrators of this storm.

Familiar magic reverberates back to her from beyond the bay, from the unconfined wilds of the ocean.

Sakura frowns slightly, propelling herself forward with a spell, seeking them out not with her sight but with her magic.

The Kiri Court has never come so close to shore.

She was expecting a confrontation with some adolescent krakens playing chicken, not an encounter with veritable Deep royalty.

She is on good terms with the Kiri Court, as much as any land-dweller can be, each of her experiences with them taking place hundreds of miles away from any land mass. It is unprecedented for them to come so close.

She is still organizing her thoughts, dread settling in her gut, when she gets within a mile of them. Sakura casts dark vision upon herself, blinking against the sting of the spell. It is far worse than the color contacts that Ino made her wear for Halloween once, but it is a price she’s willing to pay.

It comes in quite handy as a figure coalesces in the darkness near her, faintly glowing from her spell’s effect. He has the trappings of a humanoid, though there is something reptilian about him, alien in such a way that calls her magic to her defenses. He is wearing a guise, something meant to set her at ease though all it does is set her teeth on edge.

“Zabuza,” Sakura greets. “How wonderful to see you again.”

His head cocks at an inhuman angle as he assesses her. “You seem well, Sakura. Your respiratory system is still cycling oxygen. Would you like to try something different?” His smile is sharp, crowded with too many teeth.

“Again, Zabuza, I will never consent to drowning. Thank you for your consideration though,” Sakura says with a roll of her eyes. It’s what passes for a sense of humor, though Sakura finds it lacking. “Will you take me to the Patriarch?”

Zabuza goes utterly still in that strange way of Deep entities. “Of course, follow me.”

Sakura does so, unflinchingly meeting the gazes of the shadowy monstrosities they pass. Few have a care for Sakura’s human sensibilities and she appreciates their honesty in form.

Zabuza leads her to their leader, the one wearing the smallest of guises, yet his energy eclipses everyone in the vicinity.

“Yagura,” Sakura greets, bowing to him. “It brings me great pleasure to see you again. Unfortunately, these are not the best of circumstances.”

“Sakura,” he says, voice booming through the crushing, ever pressing water. Sakura’s umbrella spell wavers before she shores up strength around it, holding it fast. Should she lose it here, at these depths, she’ll be doomed. “We are pleased to be greeted with your countenance. Please, join us for the festivities.”

“Festivities?” Sakura asks mildly. “Is that what we are calling the squall above?”

Yagura waves a hand. “We are not concerned with the above, only the below. The only part of the above that we enjoy is you. We wish you to partake of the festivities. We are adding a member to our Swordsmen, our candidates must fight for the honor.”

“Is—is that why you came so close to shore?” Sakura says, swallowing. “To draw my attention?”

“Of course,” Yagura says, his smile a weight upon Sakura’s heart.

“It is a great honor to draw your attention,” Sakura says, treading lightly with her words. “Might we move these festivities outward from here? Say, three hundred miles west? I am afraid that I cannot dedicate my full attention to these festivities so close to shore. The magics there call to me.”

The storm that enters Yagura’s eyes is quelling and Sakura closes her mouth.

“We shall move,” Yagura says decisively. He reaches forward, passing through Sakura’s umbrella spell to touch her skin. His skin looks human, but his guise does not extend to his touch, his hand cold, wet, and somehow reminds her of the reflection of a full moon. His hand retreats, but his gaze is a brand. “We require your full attention.”


End file.
